The chief of staff of the Iranian Armed Forces says demand for the purchase of Iran’s homegrown sophisticated drones is much greater than the country’s production.
Speaking at a Monday conference in the capital Tehran on the role of the Sacred Defense against the ex-Iraqi regime’s eight-year war on Iran in national security, the high-ranking general highlighted Iran’s dramatic progress in the defense industry.
“Today, the (number of) customers of our drones are several times more than our production capacity,” Major General Baqeri said, adding that “major world powers” are vying to purchase Iranian weapons.
He also pointed out that once the Islamic Republic was banned from purchasing foreign-made weapons, but now it is faced with bans on the export of its domestically-developed military products.
Iran has turned into a “big drone power” that is outperforming major world powers, the commander added.
Iranian military experts and engineers have in recent years made remarkable breakthroughs in manufacturing a broad range of indigenous equipment, making the armed forces self-sufficient.
Iranian officials have declared that the country will not hesitate to strengthen its military capabilities, including its missile power, which are entirely meant for defense, and that Iran’s defense capabilities will be never subject to negotiations.
Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei has repeatedly called for efforts to maintain and boost Iran’s defense capabilities.